sump for 55 gallon

[2manyFish]

Is it possible to use a 5 gallon for a sump or is that to small? I have a lot of extra stuff and was just wondering if turning a 5 into a sump for my 55 gallon

 

[Mebbid]

A 5 would be a bit too small for a sump. Generally the bigger the better when it comes down to sump filters. You will have to drop the water level pretty low to account for backflow when the pump is turned off.

 

[CMOS]

A 5 would be a bit too small for a sump. Generally the bigger the better when it comes down to sump filters. You will have to drop the water level pretty low to account for backflow when the pump is turned off.

Agreed.

You have 48" to work with, so you should be able to get someone to build you a custom 10-12 gallon sump that will fit in your stand's footprint.

I'm running a sump on my custom 45 gallon (36L x 13W x 24H). I have the sump main chamber stuffed with 4 sections of Poret foam. The tank is doing great.

Find someone who can build you a sump. Where are you located?

CMOS

 

[2manyFish]

I dont think im gonna do it. I had the extra 5 gallon but i realized Id still need to buy a lot of other stuff that I dont have. And the 5 gallon is to small. What do u need to setup up a sump though?

 

[Mebbid]

I dont think im gonna do it. I had the extra 5 gallon but i realized Id still need to buy a lot of other stuff that I dont have. And the 5 gallon is to small. What do u need to setup up a sump though?

Water pump, overflow, tank, and pipes. The more over the top you go with it, the more efficient it will be. Adding baffles, extra filter media, or a trickle filter setup would all make it more effective.

 

[2manyFish]

Wats some of the best filter media to use? I ended up getting a fluval 305 instead cuz when I move I dont wanna have to worry bout moving the sump too and redoing all the plumbing.

 

[Mebbid]

Ceramic rings would probably be the best.

 

[CMOS]

I would suggest using Poret Foam as your media. You'll get a LOT more surface area with this as compared to almost any other media.

Swiss Tropicals sells the Poret Foam on their web site.

CMOS

 

[2manyFish]

Is the active carbon worth using?

 

[CMOS]

Is the active carbon worth using?

On occasion, yes. If you have a good bio media load it's not necessary, but it's nice to have a place in the sump to do it, if you need to.

In general, most folks use Carbon AFTER a chemical treatment for some disease to remove the chemical from the water volume.

CMOS

 

[2manyFish]

Well I have 3 trays with two spots in each tray. I was gonna try pre filter cermaic rings in the bottom and then some porous media in the middle and maybe carbon in the top but not sure if I should just use the porous stuff in both top trays